These vessels featured extremely high deadrise angles built and operated by Chinese and Arab merchants and handled by Indians and Far East Asians. To meet this growing requirement for high-quality tea and Opium, the British turned to a new class of clippers operating from Asia- the Opium and Tea clippers. Produced in the plantations of China and India, they required short voyage times to retain cargo freshness. Tea was another commodity in high demand in British society. Opium was a fast-selling commodity in Britain and China, with annual consumption far exceeding the production capabilities of the East India Company. Even today, they rival the speed of modern commercial vessels. The Chinese clippers plucked these routes and were touted as some of the fastest ships. They employed fast clippers to keep a constant supply of goods between these locations and India. The East India Company was a major driving force in creating a demand for goods in Asia and Europe. The phrase “to clip” means “to proceed at a swift pace”, which explains the origin of the term clipper. Being a fast and able vessel, the clipper ship gained popularity, and the term became mainstream by the second half of the 19th century. The term clipper originated in English texts and was followed by its prominent use in America. The other maritime contemporaries of the Baltimore Clipper were Pilot-boat, Virginia Built, and Baltimore Built vessels.Ī possible theory suggests that the term “Baltimore Clipper” was shortened to “Clipper”, giving rise to the now-popular name. It was part of the American shipbuilding spree that gripped the nation in the 18th-19th century.
But the consensus is that the Baltimore Clipper was the first vessel to employ that name. The origin of the term “clipper ship” in naval architecture is disputed. How long it took clipper ships to cross the Atlantic?
Famous Clipper Ships and Surviving Vessels.Development and Subsequent Decline of the Clippers.In this article, we dive into the world of clipper ships, their role in sustaining the global economy during its 19th-century boom, and the generations of vessels they inspired. This unique mast-and-sail combination also enabled the clipper ships to gain the immense popularity they enjoyed in the mid-to-late 19th century. The most important aspect of a clipper ship was speed, and it was built to enhance a streamlined design and enable cargo owners to maximize revenue while keeping costs down.Ī clipper ship had three masts with square sails covering every feasible coverable area on the mast. In its way, the clipper ship revolutionized water transport, thanks to its speed even while transporting cargo. These ships were later incorporated by the English shipbuilders, and the clipper ship started becoming popular worldwide. It facilitated faster transport of cargo through the oceanic waters. In the 1840s, a new kind of merchant navy vessel was created by American shipbuilders. A clipper ship is a synonym for a merchant ship from the 19th century that plied global routes and ferried cargo and passengers.
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